alternator check

[General Baxter]

now do i check it when its off the car?

yes iv got a meter lol

[General Baxter]

iv got two here,

iv put - side of the meter to the casing, but the other to the mine charge wire, it reads -2.567 volts, spin it (by hand) reads just about 0,

do the same with the other one, reads 0.000volts, spin it goes above 2.5 volts

i swaped the little voltage reg thingy over, one reads -volt and the other 0

would i be right inthinking the voltage reg is ****ed ?

[mowgli]

nick, i don't think you can test an alternator without it being connected to a battery

[General Baxter]

if you spin it, im sure it would put out some kind of voltage ?

[Adam]

Think how quick it spins when connected to the belt....
Turning it by hand aint going do much in terms of producing a current lol
And it needs a small current to start itself (the batt light on the dash), so i dont think you can easily test them on a bench. Might be wrong though

Just wack it on a engine and see what voltage its outputting.

[mowgli]

it would make a little bit, but it needs to be doing 3000rpm & connected to a battery to see if it is working enough to power a battery....

[AlexW]

As above, youve got next to no chance of finding out if its working off a car, yes you may be able to spin it fast enough but never fast enough to fully test it.

Put it back on the car lol

[General Baxter]

well i can produce 3volts by spinning it,

adam do you know how hard it is to remove it with the charger on lol

[mowgli]

do you know how hard it is to remove it with the charger on lol

read this..... (http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Who_first_said_To_make_a_rod_for_one's_own_back)

[Adam]

Well, is the alternator knackered???

Put a voltmeter on the batt??

[General Baxter]

Well, is the alternator knackered???

Put a voltmeter on the batt??

nope it dont change,

12.546volts lol


but theres a little board inside, i think iv fired it when i welded it lol

[Adam]

Remove alt and bin it then? Lol

[skidmarkz]

You can't test the Alternator without it being fed 12v - "Ignition sense"

Alternators wont give out any voltage or acurate without the Ignition sense being fed 12v, so strap it back on the car plug the IG wire back in dont connect the main battery lead see what she is kicking out... mines fooked! died today!